Red River recruiting

Rise of A&M, Baylor makes it tougher for Oklahoma schools to recruit in Texas

HOUSTON -- Both Bob Stoops and Mike Gundy know Oklahoma does not have a deep enough talent pool for both programs to win at the highest level relying primarily on homegrown recruits. So they've made it a priority to look south of the Red River to stockpile talent. The approach has worked quite well for years, as the Sooners and Cowboys have won conference titles with rosters loaded with Lone Star State prospects.

But the recruiting climate in Texas has changed dramatically over the past three years thanks to the Johnny Football-fueled rise of Texas A&M and the turnaround job Art Briles has done at Baylor. Schools that used to only have to truly recruit against the Longhorns for the state's top prospects are now locked in three- or four-team tussles. Suddenly, the ability of OU and OSU to go deep in the heart of Texas has been met with resistance. Could the days of the Cowboys and Sooners landing players like Dez Bryant, Justin Gilbert, Tommie Harris, Russell Okung, Trent Williams and Adrian Peterson be over?